For you I will
by Jediempress
Summary: The plans are being made, decisions becoming finalized and relationships are continuing to evolve. The events leading into Future Strife in the Unavoidable Truth series.


For you… I will

"Hey." Riku approached Cloud, completely relaxed and totally unconcerned. He dropped his bag and wrapped his arms around the blonde's neck. In response, Cloud raised his own arms to rest in the other's slim hips. Their lips met in an intense, needy kiss.

Sora shook his head, glancing around. There was no sign of anyone else in the garage. His felt his mood fall. He should not have been surprised that Leon was not here. He was probably busy doing something for the restoration.

However, it was still depressing.

Riku and Cloud moved apart and Cloud addressed Sora. "Leon got stuck in a meeting with the project leaders."

The brunette smiled weakly. "I figured that."

Riku gave his friend a sympathetic look. With his fingers laced with Cloud's, he nudged Sora with his other hand. "Come on."

The trio walked to the house that had become all of theirs home. As they proceeded through town, several smiles were sent their way along with 'hello's and a few 'good to see you again's. It really was like coming home.

"Yuffie doesn't know you're here." Cloud spoke softly.

"Why does that not surprise me?" Riku chuckled. "You know she'll know by the end of the day."

"That's fine. We can go see her now if you want." Cloud shrugged. "We just didn't want to deal with her beforehand."

Sora listened to the couple's easy conversation. He was always awed with how different the two were when they were together. Somehow, they just opened each other up. He actually really enjoyed being around them, despite the frequent molestation.

"What do you want to do, Sora?" Riku glanced across Cloud's chest.

The younger shrugged. "Doesn't really matter to me; we're here for you."

"Who was the one who circled the date on his calendar and was packed two days ago?"

Cloud chuckled lowly as Sora blushed a bit.

Riku smirked, before getting back to business. "It sound's like Leon is going to be tied up for a while yet. Want to get some food and then we can sit in the park?"

"The fountain's done." Cloud commented.

"Okay." Sora agreed. They had reached the house by this point and he walked in before the couple. He bit his lip, feeling a little odd being here. Had it only been a few weeks since he had last been here? Moreover, everything that had happened on that trip….

"Stop reminiscing and put your bag away." Riku brushed past him.

Sora did not bother to wonder how Riku knew what he was thinking and went into Leon's room to stash his bag. He glanced at the bed as he passed it, a light flush coloring his cheeks. Suddenly, he was very nervous about seeing Leon.

He forced the feeling away and set his bag by the window. He quickly left the room and headed back downstairs. Riku was straddling Cloud's lap, whispering to the blonde as he ran his fingers though spikes of hair.

He heard Sora approach and got up. "Ready?"

Sora nodded and Cloud rose to his feet.

They picked up sandwiches at one of the stands and settled themselves on a hill beside one of the bridges that crossed the stream that ran through the park. Several children played in the field across the water, their parents scattered among them.

"This is great." Riku noted, watching two boys race one another while a girl cheered them both on. "It's so peaceful."

"I've taken to coming here to think." Cloud spoke softly, legs stretched out before him. "It's really beautiful at sunrise."

"I bet it is." Riku leaned his shoulder against Cloud's for a moment before frowning at the third member of their party, "Sora?"

"Huh?"

"You okay?"

"Yeah," The brunette nodded a bit absently. "They look happy out there."

Riku narrowed his eyes and again looked out across the way. "Yeah, they do. Reminds me of the races we used to have."

"Yep…"

Riku studied his best friend. Something was working its way through Sora's head and it was something very important. Not much could steal the younger teen's attention quite like that.

"I knew I'd find the three of you here." Leon's voice softly broke through the odd quiet that had formed. He stood behind them, looking tired. "How was the trip?"

"Long as always," Riku answered. All three were waiting for Sora to realize that the man had arrived but the teen seemed completely lost in his own thoughts.

Leon stepped forward and lightly kicked the younger brunette's back, "You going to at least say hello?"

Sora blinked and looked up. A bright smile crossed his face and he jumped up. He wrapped his arms around Leon's waist for only a moment and pulled away. "Hey!"

"Hey." The older man grinned lightly. He brushed Sora's cheek with a single finger but those two things were the only indication they gave hinting that they were anything more than good friends. "I see you all got food without me."

"We didn't know how long you were going to end up being." Cloud shrugged.

The sable-haired man groaned, rubbing at the bridge of his nose. "Yeah; I really thought we were going to be in there all day. No one seemed able to agree and no one was budging. Then all the sudden there was this moment of serendipity and everyone was able to agree on a plan."

"Well, that's good." Riku smirked, standing up and tugging Cloud up with him. "Now you and Sora can spend some quality time, while Cloud and I go do things."

Sora rolled his eyes. "I was wondering how long you could hold out."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Riku gave him a hard look.

"Nothing…"

Aqua eyes narrowed. "Oh, I get it. You know what, fine. I'll say it. I love sex and unless you have a very good reason against it, I'm going to end my month long abstinence."

He pushed at Cloud's back, guiding him out of the park. The blonde chuckled in amusement, letting himself be pushed around. As they disappeared, Riku called over his shoulder. "Don't hurry home."

Sora shook his head, glancing at Leon. The man was watching him closely and Sora found himself a little uncomfortable, "So, uh, what now?"

"Well, I should eat something." Leon looked across the stream.

"Okay." Why did it feel so damn awkward with him? He had been so excited to come when he was back home, going so far as to count the days until he saw Leon again. Then on the Gummi, this odd feeling of nervousness had set in…And now…

--0—0—

Riku lay contently on the mattress, Cloud's form collapsed on top of him. Their panting had come down to a slightly labored breathing and now they simply basked in the comfort of being together again. Though neither had said it aloud, they could not wait until they no longer had to go through these long separations.

He threaded his long fingers though Cloud's blonde spikes.

"So did Kairi have any requests for this trip?" Cloud murmured, reaching over to grasp Riku's left hand with his own. He held them up together, watching the light glint off the matching rings.

"Oh she and Seiya gave me a list of things we're supposed to decide." Riku grinned. "It's taking all my effort to keep them from going totally over board."

"Why does that not surprise me?"

The silvered teen idly tugged on a spike of hair. "I told my brother."

Cloud stiffened a bit. "Did you? ...And?"

"He gave his blessing."

"Humph."

"Are you surprised?"

The blonde sighed. "Honestly? No. Sephiroth seems to genuinely care about you."

Riku bit his lip. "The two of you really need to try simply talking to one another."

"We have talked."

"I mean, _really_ talk." Riku countered, glancing down at Cloud's head. "Try to have a real conversation."

Cloud raised himself and rolled over to sit up beside the other.

Riku continued. "Look, I'm not expecting you to be friends with him, I just…" He sat up and ran a hand through his shoulder-length locks. "I don't know."

"I know this is important to you." Cloud spoke slowly. "I'm really trying, Riku, but… there's just too much _I_ can't let go of. I know it's me, and you are not the only one trying to form some kind of reconciliation between Sephiroth and me. Aerith has been pushing for it for a while now and, hell, if she can forgive and let go of the fact that he killed her, you would think that I could at least form an amicable truce with him.

"…But I _can't_. I can't just get over it." Cloud turned to Riku. "I'm not ready to try playing nice with him."

"I'm not asking that." The silvered teen leaned against the headboard. "I just want the two of you to be able to be in the same room without constantly eyeing the other, waiting for someone to move."

The older one moved closer, settling himself beside the younger. He took hold of Riku's left hand. "Look, when I decided to give you this ring, I did so knowing that by marrying you, I had to accept everything that came with you, including your brother."

Riku studied Cloud's blue eyes intently, searching. He knew Cloud meant every word he said, but he kept hoping for more. Truth be told, when it came to his lover and his brother, he had no idea what to expect. Both had managed to surprise him.

"I already said I was okay if he wanted to go."

Riku blew out a breath that was almost a sad laugh. "Yeah, you'll put up with his presence."

Cloud frowned, feeling a horrible pain in his chest at the look in Riku's eyes. The absolute last thing he wanted was to cause Riku any pain. He knew how important Sephiroth was to the other, and he was even beginning to appreciate how much Sephiroth appeared to care for Riku. He almost believed that the former general just might love the teen.

Still holding Riku's hand, Cloud reached up with the other and traced his jaw. There was only one way he could remove the pain in those aqua depths, which he had decided the first time he saw them were the most beautiful eyes he had ever seen. "I want him to be there."

Faint disbelief shaded those eyes.

"I won't pretend that I want this for me, but if you want Sephiroth there, then I want him there."

Riku still was not quite buying it.

Cloud set his jaw. "Arrange it."

Riku angled his head in confusion. "Arrange it?"

"The meeting or talk or whatever you want to call it." Cloud clarified. "I'll talk with Sephiroth and ask him myself to attend the damn thing."

Riku searched Cloud's eyes franticly, looking for any sign of deceit, unable to believe the blonde had really said that. He found nothing but sincerity, even if it was rather forced. The fact that he was going though the effort was enough.

His face lit in a smile and he pushed Cloud back onto the mattress. He got up on his knees, kneeling over the other. He gazed down with clear intent and with real emotion in his voice, simply said, "Thank you."

Then he dropped down to show the extent of his gratitude.

--0—0—

Leon was watching Sora closely as he ate his late lunch. The teen was obviously thinking seriously about something and, given the awkward manner he was behaving in now, Leon had a fairly good idea what that something was. In the back of his mind, he had almost been expecting it.

Deciding to take a chance, he quietly asked; "What's wrong, Sora?"

"Nothing, really…Just thinking about some things;" The young brunette answered, looking away from the window. He smiled shyly. "I missed you."

"Same here."

The smile brightened. "I'm really glad you got out of that meeting early, too."

Leon smirked. "And why is that?"

"Cause now we have more time together." Sora stated calmly. "We're only going to be here two days."

"I was under the assumption that most of that involved Riku and Cloud meeting with people and making arrangements."

"It is." Sora frowned. "Unfortunately, I promised Riku I'd help him with as much as I could and my mom is gonna grill me for details as soon as I walk in the door."

The older man shrugged and leaned back in his chair. He had actually expected that. "Well, we have the entire rest of the day to do whatever you want."

Sora nodded. "I don't care what we do. I just want to spend time with you."

Leon smiled at that. The teen always managed to make him smile. It was nice to have someone who simply wanted to be with him. He had not had that in such a long time. "Want to walk through the park?"

"Okay."

They left the café, walking together in a languid fashion. Leon had his hands in his pockets and Sora's were behind his head. There was nothing different about their interaction outside of a few shy glances from the younger one.

As they walked the park, Leon pointed out all the little things they had done and commented on what a bitch laying out the path so that it wound around logically was. Others greeted them as they went through, a few smiles here and there. The next hour was very relaxing for both of them.

They found Aerith at one of the flowerbeds, finishing planting a corner of vibrant red flowers. She glanced up at them and smiled gently. "Hello, Sora."

"Hey. Those are pretty."

She nodded. "As soon as I saw them I knew they were perfect for this spot."

She brushed her hands on her skirt and stood. "Tomorrow morning I'll bring over the Good Fairies."

Sora frowned. "So long as they don't try to put me in pink again…"

Leon gave him a confused look. "Do I even _want_ to know?"

"They gave me my drive forms. There was a color issue." Sora quickly explained. "I took care of it."

"Right;" The scarred man stated. "I'm picking out my own clothes."

Aerith grinned. "They're only helping with the decoration and Fauna is bidding to make the cake. I have no idea what's being done about clothing."

"I think Riku said we were going to discuss that tomorrow also." Sora clearly was not too sure of that. "I don't even know who all's going to be actually involved in this thing."

Leon shrugged. "I'm going with the attitude of I'll do whatever they tell me to. The whole thing is a stupid dog and pony show."

Aerith scoffed. "So you say, but I _know_ Riku's secretly looking forward to this."

"Only 'cause he gets to be the center of attention." Sora laughed. Leon nodded his agreement.

The woman shook her head but the tiny smile showed that she did not completely disagree with the statement. "Has Riku decided who's coming from Destiny Islands?"

"Uh, I think so." The brunette teen angled his head in thought. "I know Mom and Kairi for sure. I think he wants to invite Tidus, Wakka, and Selphie but we don't know how we're gonna go about that."

"That could potentially be an issue." Leon agreed. "We still aren't supposed to talk about any of the other worlds."

"Yeah; have you guys heard at all from the King?"

Both indicted no.

"I know Riku would love it if he came," said Sora. "I wonder if he's even tried asking him."

"You'd know better than us." Leon shrugged. "I only know who here has been invited because Cloud dragged me around with him as he invited them."

"I need to start dinner." Aerith changed the subject. "Do you all want to come over?"

Leon glanced at Sora. Their eyes met for a brief moment before Sora looked away with a shrug. "Yeah, that sounds good."

"Well I didn't want to cook and I doubt Riku's going to want to. Thanks."

Aerith smiled. "Sure. Come to the house in, oh, an hour and a half?"

Leon nodded once. Aerith waved a bit as she left the pair. After she was out of sight, Leon turned to Sora. The teen had been giving him odd looks since they met up and had not tried once to initiate any kind of physical contact outside of that initial greeting hug. While the older man noted this, he realized he was not particularly bothered by it.

"Shall we see if the sex fiends have temporarily sated themselves yet?"

Sora giggled, "Yeah."

On impulse, the sable-haired man settled his arm around Sora's narrow shoulders. Said teen stiffened a touch but quickly relaxed and settled into Leon's side. They walked to the house like that.

It was quiet as they entered the place, which likely meant that Cloud and Riku had fallen asleep. Sora was actually a bit upset about that. This, for all intent and purpose, left him alone in the house with Leon. He knew he should not feel so awkward about that but he did.

The last time they had been alone together…

"What's wrong, Sora?" Leon's soft voice broke his thoughts.

Sora wanted to play it off as nothing but he knew that Leon would call his bluff. He had no idea how to answer the question because he did not know what was troubling him. He sighed and sat on the sofa, deciding honesty was his best choice. "I don't know. Since arriving here, I've just felt kinda off. I was so excited to come here and now… I don't know."

Leon studied him for a long moment before sitting beside him. He turned Sora's face up to search those bright blue eyes of his. Sora was uncertain what the man saw or even what he was looking for. Something in Leon's expression slowly changed.

Leon dipped in and lightly kissed Sora's lips. The teen sighed a little into it but made no move to take it further. While he loved the feeling he got from the kiss, he did not feel any of that driving, intense need that had come along with it the last time he and Leon had been in this very same position.

What did that mean?

"Hey, guys. I thought the rule was to keep it in the bedroom." Riku's smirking voice called to them.

Leon moved away from Sora, still gazing at him. "It's my couch."

Riku merely shrugged. "Whatever, it's not like Cloud and I ever followed that rule."

"I cannot wait until you get your own house."

"Oh, you know you'll miss us." Riku returned from the kitchen with a bottle of water.

Sora only half-paid attention to the banter, still pondering what had just happened. For the life of him, he could not figure out what was so different between the last trip and now. Something had changed in the course of the month.

"We're going to Aerith's for dinner." Leon told Riku and Cloud, the latter of whom was coming down the stairs at that moment. "She figured we didn't want to cook."

Riku was looking at Sora as he replied. "Cooking is the last thing I want to do on this trip. It's going to be enough of a nightmare trying to get all this stupid groundwork laid out."

"Hey, I'm still for saying screw them all and let's elope." Cloud took a drink from Riku's water.

"I'd like to live to see nineteen, dear." The silvered one responded flatly.

"Then quit complaining." The blonde traced Riku's fine jaw line with a smirk; "And I know you love the attention."

"Maybe just a little," Riku admitted. He flicked his eyes back to Sora, noticing that something was obviously up with his best friend. After dinner, he would pull him to the side and force it out of him. "So when are we expected over there?"

"In a half hour," Leon leaned back against the arm of the sofa. "By the way, she's bringing the Good Fairies over in the morning."

"They understand there will be no pink, right?"

Sora actually smiled. "That was what I said."

Cloud raised an eyebrow at Leon who shrugged. "No idea.

"Come on." Riku nudged Cloud. "Let's go eat. I'm starved."

"I wonder why."

Sora rolled his eyes, catching Leon's briefly afterwards. He quickly stood and headed for the door. "Yeah, I'm hungry too."

Both Riku and Cloud looked curiously at the other pair but kept quiet. They fell in behind Sora, and Leon followed them. The walk to Aerith's was quiet.

Yuffie assaulted the teens nearly the moment they entered the woman's house. She immediately set in throwing questions at Riku as to who was doing what for the wedding. Riku shrugged at most of them and ignored the rest. He had all day tomorrow to worry about all of that.

Cid hauled the girl away from them and Riku ducked into the kitchen while Sora, Leon, and Cloud were distracted by it. Aerith was for the most part finished with everything and she simply smiled at him as she set things up to be served. "Are you getting excited?"

Riku smirked. "I'm caught between that and panicking."

"I would imagine so.

"Hey, I want to ask you something." Riku folded his arms. "Do Sora and Leon seem to be acting strange to you?"

"They're awkward with one another." She stated simply, removing rolls from the oven. "I think the last time you were here; they perhaps got a bit ahead of themselves."

That made sense. Looking back, the two had moved a bit fast considering it was them. At the time, he had just been so glad they had found someone and caught up in his own things that he had not really stopped to think about it.

"They'll get things settled." Aerith continued. "Could you help me bring all this out?"

--0—0—

Dinner went by without a hitch. They briefly discussed the schedule for the next two days and the things that needed to be discussed, but for the most part, they just chatted. The walk home was quiet but not as tense as the walk to Aerith's.

Leon and Sora walked side-by-side in an easy manner just ahead of Riku and Cloud. Riku watched them and though their bodies were a bit taut, they themselves seemed a little more relaxed. He glanced at Cloud, who merely shrugged and gave him the _we'll see what they're like in the morning_ look.

No one stayed up late, knowing there were going to be a near endless stream of people to talk to tomorrow. Riku and Cloud retired first and after somewhere around ten minutes Leon decided to follow. Sora bit his lip and went upstairs with him.

The house was oddly quiet and for that, both were thankful. They did not need the added pressure of listening to the not-so-faint noises of the next room. Things were peculiarly strange already.

Sora hovered a bit by the door as Leon turned down the bed. When the man sat upon it and motioned Sora to come over, he was rather concerned but did as beckoned. He settled himself beside Leon, not looking at him.

The older man sighed. "All right, we have got to figure this out."

"I'm sorry." Sora rushed out. "This is totally my fault. I don't know what's going on with me. I was so excited to be coming here and I really wanted to see you and…"

A finger to his lips silenced him. He glanced over and met Leon's eyes. Leon gazed at him thoughtfully. "It's not just you, Sora."

Leon moved his hand but kept his eyes on the younger one. "I feel it, too. I think… I think what happened the last time you were here was a result of several things. What we're experiencing now, well, it's the consequences of our actions."

Sora gnawed on his lower lip. "You mean we made a big mistake."

"No." Griever jingled as Leon shifted his body to face Sora fully. "It's not that. What it is, is that you and I, while we care a great deal for one another...we aren't in love. There _is_ an attraction but it's not physical.

"You know how isolated I've always been, but you have been one of the exceptions since we first met. I could talk to you from the beginning, and I feel better when you're around. During the last trip, I saw how isolated you were feeling and how much you wanted understand sex and relationships. I found myself needing to help you."

Sora was rather surprised how much sense Leon's words made. It did sound like something he would do. The teen also began seeing his own reasoning for his actions. He nodded slowly, thinking aloud. "I was feeling really confused. I knew I wanted _something_…but no idea what. I saw how happy Riku was with Cloud and I guess I wanted that for myself.

"I always liked you, always felt safe with you. I guess I just," he shrugged, "I knew you'd never hurt me."

Leon traced Sora's jaw. "So, it was not a mistake."

The teen grinned weakly; "But it wasn't a real relationship."

"It's still a relationship, just not the one we though we were moving into," Leon corrected. "And I'd like to think we both benefited from it."

"Definitely," Sora fully smiled. "I learned a lot from you."

"I'm glad I was able to give you something for all you've done for me." He leaned over and lightly kissed Sora's lips. "Now, think you can sleep?"

"Yeah," Sora stood. "I think tomorrow's gonna suck for all of us."

"Hey, let them deal with it. We're just observing." Leon got up also and both changed into sleep clothes.

"Oh, you know Riku's going to keep giving me those looks and I'm gonna cave every time and I'm gonna get stuck making the arrangements." Sora frowned. "I swear he's got everyone wrapped around his finger."

Leon chuckled as he threw back the blankets and climbed into bed. "The guy's just too damn beautiful. Don't tell Cloud I said that."

Sora grinned widely, coming over and sliding in beside Leon. "Riku is probably one of the most beautiful people I've even seen, and it's not just his looks."

Leon could not argue with that.

Sora turned to face him and they looked easily at one another. "Thanks, Leon."

"Come here," Leon held up his arm and Sora scooted over. The older man dropped his arm along Sora's waist. "Thank you, Sora."

--0—0—

Riku had already made coffee when Leon came downstairs. He sat at the breakfast bar with a notebook, writing out what was likely a list of things to do. He did not look up. "There are muffins in the oven."

"Chocolate chip?" asked Leon, not needing an answer. He opened the oven and quickly pulled the tray out. "It's going to take more than this to keep Cloud from running away in terror once he realizes what he's gotten himself into."

"That's why I'm going to tie his ankles to the chair legs."

"Ah." Leon poured himself some coffee and gingerly brought the hot muffin over near Riku. He split it down the middle to cool it off faster and glanced at what Riku was writing. "Think you can get this all done today?"

"I'm sure as hell going to try." The teen replied. He flicked his aqua eyes over. "So what's the final verdict?"

Leon knew what he meant. He shrugged and popped a chunk of muffin in his mouth. "We're good."

Riku studied him a moment and nodded. That was good enough for him. So long as Leon and Sora were happy, he did not particularly care what their exact status was.

Sora came down a little while later, smiling and _oooohing_ when he saw the muffins. Sometime after, Cloud appeared, in his sleep pants, looking like he had just rolled out of bed. He grinned sleepily at his favorite breakfast food, before a slight frown appeared.

"You aren't making me talk to him today, are you? Don't we have enough for today?"

Riku shook his head. "No, you have to do that tomorrow. This is just a pathetic attempt to keep you from heading for the hills today."

"Sephiroth is in the hills," Cloud noted. "I'm stuck here with you."

Riku shot him a weak glare. Sora snickered at them, taking another muffin. "Shouldn't you be dressed, Cloud? Aerith is going to be here like-"

There was a knock on the door. Cloud choked a bit, turning and darting upstairs. Leon rolled his eyes as he answered the door.

Aerith smiled, walking in with the three Good Fairies. They immediately started in on Riku who gave Sora the expected pleading look. The brunette sent Leon an _I told you so_ smirk. Sora diverted their attention some, settling them down until Cloud returned, now dressed.

From that moment, the day rushed forward.

--0—0—

By the time the sun was beginning to set, it was obvious Cloud wanted to hang himself. Sora kept zoning out on them and Leon had left early on due to a sudden _emergency_. No one had missed the greatly relieved look on his face as he left with Cid. Riku managed to listen politely to the last nice old lady who wanted to make the wedding cake but anyone who knew him saw the _get the hell out of here_ look in his eyes.

She finished listing all of the projects she had done and how much everyone loved her cakes. The silvered teen smiled, thanking her for her offer and escorting her out, said that someone would be in touch. He shut the door behind him and turned back to the others.

"I quit." Riku walked back over. "I had _no_ idea it was going to get this bad."

He stopped behind Cloud's chair, hanging his arms over the man's shoulders. Cloud placed both hands on those arms. "It's not too late to forget the whole thing."

"Oh, yes it is." Riku and Sora countered together.

Aerith grinned. She sorted out the lists across the table. "All you have to do is pick which one of each of these you like the best. I will handle everything else."

Cloud sighed gratefully. "I love you, Aer."

"Of course you do."

The couple pointed out several things that they agreed on and Aerith collected those papers. They truly disagreed on very little and on those few things, they referred to Sora and Aerith for their opinion. The last thing to choose was who was making the cake.

"You know," noted Sora as he looked over the list. "It would have been nice if they had brought samples. Cake is such a tricky thing. There's so many kinds and weights…"

Riku grinned. "Toss those out. Your mom's making the cake. I don't know why I didn't think of her before."

"Your mom bakes cakes?" Cloud asked the brunette, who also seemed to be wondering why they had not thought of that.

"Seiya's cakes are legendary on the Islands." Riku explained, leaning over to kiss Cloud's cheek. "So there we go, all done."

"Finally;" The blonde stood. "I say we find Leon, go out for dinner and make him pay."

"Oh, I'm all for that." Riku agreed. He motioned to Sora and Aerith. "And both of you will be coming with. Then we can all gang up on him and dump everything we've been through for the past ten hours on him at once."

Sora nodded enthusiastically and Aerith giggled. She placed all of the chosen listings in a folder. "I'll copy these down for you in the morning so you can show Seiya. I think I'm going to like her."

Sora snorted. "Oh you two are going to get along fabulously."

Cloud sighed from the door. "Can we go now? I can't stand to be in this room any longer."

Riku, Sora, and Aerith chuckled and followed him out. On the street, Riku suddenly paused. "Hey, you guys go find Leon. I'm going to take care of something and I'll meet you at the restaurant."

Cloud raised an eyebrow. "Would this involve your brother?"

"You said you'd talk to him." Riku shouted over his shoulder as he hurried down the street.

Aerith studied Cloud a moment, a small smile coming to her. She glanced at Sora, who also seemed impressed. They said nothing and the three headed off in the opposite direction Riku had.

--0—0—

Leon had known he was in trouble the moment he saw the three. Sora had happily announced that everything was decided and they were all going to dinner. Cloud had calmly added that Leon was paying.

Riku had joined them shortly after they arrived at Kyo's. He seemed a bit apprehensive but kissed Cloud fully and simply said everything was arranged, whatever that was. He shot the friendly version of the Jenova stare of doom at Leon as the red-haired owner of the restaurant came to seat them.

As dinner progressed, Leon increasingly wanted to throttle both Sora and Cloud. Both were seemingly determined to inform him of every word that had been spoken throughout the day. Aerith was not helping, jumping in to tell them when they forgot something. Riku was oddly distracted.

"All right, I get it," Leon finally loudly whispered as dessert was set. "You're pissed because I got out of being there. I'm not even part of this whole wedding thing."

"Actually," Cloud said slowly, glancing at Riku. "That's something we were going to ask you about."

The sable-haired man narrowed his eyes.

Cloud seemed decidedly uncomfortable but continued. "We were hoping that you and Sora would stand with us."

Sora gaped. "You mean like be your best men?"

Riku rolled his eyes, "Yes, Sora."

"Cool!"

Leon's reaction was much more subdued. "You're serious?"

"Yeah; you're my best friend and the closest thing I have to a brother."

Leon looked touched for a mere second before shrugging indifferently. "Sure."

Cloud smirked. He had expected that attitude.

"So what's on tomorrow's agenda?" Leon moved on as if the prior bit of conversation had held no significance.

"We're taking a trip out to the other end of Zero district." Riku answered.

"Why?"

"Cloud has a meeting with Sephiroth." Sora grinned.

Leon quirked an eyebrow; "Oh, that should be interesting. Do we all get to go?"

"If you really want to," Cloud said slowly. "I doubt it's going to be all that interesting."

"I think we're done here." Riku motioned to Aya for the check.

"Yeah, I'm beat." Sora twisted his neck. He stood, smiling at Aya as she came over. "I'm gonna hang out with the nephews for a bit."

"We'll try to be asleep in an hour." Riku stated, knowing exactly why Sora was delaying going home. "We should head out tomorrow around nine. We have to leave for the Islands by noon."

Leon paid the bill and turned to Aerith. "Do you want help copying all the information?"

"Sure." She nodded as the group stood. Riku and Cloud waved farewell and the group split off, going in their three separate directions.

--0—0--

"Why did I agree to this again?"

"Because you love Riku," Sora answered as if it where the most obvious thing in the world. Glancing at Leon, he seemed to agree.

"Right," Cloud said dryly.

"It won't be that bad." Sora tried assuring him. From the uneasy look on his face, it was for his benefit also. No one knew how this was going to go.

Riku had left before them and now they were waiting on the edge of town. They figured not only was it a neutral meeting spot, but it was also far enough out that none of the citizens would simply wander across them. The last thing they needed was a panic due to the infamous One-Winged Angel being sighted. This was going to be awkward enough at it was.

"Does anyone know if Riku even asked him to do this before now?" Cloud looked over at his best friend. Leon was studying a nearby roof.

"We really need to get out here."

"Leon," Cloud snapped.

"How should I know? Ask Sora."

"What makes you think I know?" Sora protested. "Riku doesn't tell me everything."

"Just most of it…"

"NO!" Sora smacked Leon's arm. "And I don't want him to! He and Cloud are into some crazy stuff."

"And how do you know that?" Leon raised an eye at him. Sora flushed, looking away.

"That's enough flirting you two." Cloud smirked at them. "I swear the two of you…"

"Two of us what?" asked Sora

"Never mind;" He turned away, the moment of levity over. Now he was back to fidgeting. Yes, Sephiroth had been a key element in keeping Riku and himself together, and he would forever be indebted to the man for that but he still was not ready to be friends with the guy.

He sighed. Nevertheless, this is what Riku wanted and he would not deny Riku this.

Damn love…

He suddenly looked toward the end of the street. A moment later, Riku and his brother rounded the corner of the last building. Riku had his head low, face nearly invisible. Conversely, Sephiroth walked easily beside him, mildly curious.

"Here we go," mumbled Leon, he and Sora stepping back a bit.

The silvered pair approached the small group. Riku positioned himself between Sephiroth and Cloud, reaching out to squeeze the blonde's hand. Smiling a bit, his eyes gazed at Cloud through his bangs. He was obviously worried.

Sephiroth nodded to Leon and Sora before addressing Cloud, that curious look still in place. "Well, Cloud, my brother seems to be under the impression you have something to speak to me about."

"Yeah, I do." Cloud folded his arms. "I'm doing this more for his benefit than anything else."

Sephiroth waited.

Dropping his arms, Cloud angled his head and looked up. "He told you about our bonding."

"Yes. I have already given my consent."

Sora snorted under his breath and mumbled. "Not that they needed it."

"I know he also invited you to attend this ceremony he's insisting on having." Cloud shot Riku a faint smile as the teen opened his mouth to protest.

"He has." Sephiroth confirmed slowly.

Cloud faced the older man. He managed a steady gaze on him. "I also want you to be involved. I am stating here and now that anything Riku wants you to do, I want also. _I'm_ asking you to attend, and if Riku wants it, to be a part of our wedding."

Sephiroth considered Cloud's words, idly studying the blonde's face. There was nothing calculating to his expression, just that thoughtful intrigue. Everyone present knew that Sephiroth could read Cloud easily.

A black shoulder wing twitched and its owner declined his head toward Cloud. "I shall respect your wishes, Strife."

Riku glanced between them, a hesitant smile tugging at his lips. "So Sephiroth can…?"

"Yes." Cloud nodded. "In any way he's willing."

Riku grinned widely, wrapping his arms around Cloud's neck and hugging him tightly.

Sephiroth raised an eyebrow and glanced at Leon and Sora. He moved toward them when Riku shifted his body and the couple began kissing intently. Impossibly long, silver hair fluttered as Sephiroth shook his head. "I will never be comfortable with such displays."

"It's not just you," added Leon.

"I assume the two of you are also involved in this ceremony."

"Yeah."

"Humm," Sephiroth looked to Sora. "How's your mother?"

"Oh, the same as always;" Sora rolled his eyes. "She's gonna flip out when I tell her all of this."

A corner of the man's lip curled up. "If nothing else, the next two months should prove entertaining."

"Yep."

Leon checked his watch. "You two need to start heading out. It's after eleven."

"Right," Sora reluctantly agreed. "Yo, Riku… Break it up, we gotta go."

"Go ahead," the older teen shouted back breathlessly. "We'll catch up."

"Something tells me I do not want to turn around," Sephiroth commented idly.

"Probably not."

Leon began walking back toward town. "Might as well walk with us, Sephiroth; we can give you the brief rundown of what's being planned."

--0—0—

Riku and Cloud strolled into the garage at nearly exactly noon, hand-in-hand. They were clearly in no hurry. They approached Sora, Leon, and Sephiroth casually, almost lazily.

"I don't get how the two of you do it." Sora shook his head.

"We don't want to," Leon noted, rubbing the back of Sora's neck affectionately.

"Thanks for bringing my stuff, Sor;" Riku murmured, slipping his arm around Cloud's waist.

"Whatever."

"Did they tell you everything?" The silvered teen addressed his brother.

"Enough." The man replied. "Though I do not see what you want from me."

"You're my brother. I need my family to stand with me as I get married."

A muscle in Cloud's jaw twitched but Riku did not notice it. Both Sora and Leon had, however. They glanced at each and silently agreed that they had not heard the end of the Cloud fully accepting Sephiroth problem.

At least Cloud was trying.

"All right, you need to go." The blonde stated, placing a quick kiss on Riku's lips.

Riku moved away from him with a soft _I love you_. He waved to Leon and looked at Sephiroth. He grinned at his brother brightly. "Seiya's going to flip out."

"Inform her I look forward to seeing her also."

Riku smirked. "I knew you liked her."

Sora sputtered, obviously misinterpreting Riku's words. Leon patted the teen's back. "He doesn't mean it that way, Sora."

"Oh, right."

Riku and Leon chuckled and Sephiroth gave the boy an amused look.

"Come on, Sora." Riku gave a final wave. Sora repeated the action, loudly saying good-bye.

Leon, Cloud, and Sephiroth watched the Gummi take off quietly. Cloud flicked an uneasy look at Sephiroth and once the ship was gone, turned and walked away. Sephiroth glanced back at him, expression unreadable, and then teleported out.

Leon shook his head with a smile before heading out of the garage. Things were certainly going to be interesting.

--0—0—0—

…And this not-so-little ditty kicks off the last arc of the Unavoidable Truth series. Sorry to anyone upset by the turning of Leon and Sora's relationship.

I thank all still following this little tale of mine.


End file.
